WESTON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Ultimate Software (NAS: ULTI) , a leading cloud provider of people management solutions, announced today that Sammons Financial Group (SFG), an insurance holding company whose member companies offer a diverse portfolio of investment services, has leveraged the UltiPro solution to streamline communication with employees; provide managers with direct access to employee data; and elevate HR's ability to create and deliver people-centric reporting and business intelligence.

Prior to using UltiPro, SFG was using a system that did not meet the needs of the organization. The leadership team included Ultimate Software in its assessment for a new HCM solution and then chose Ultimate because of its reputation and culture as well as its flexible HR and payroll solutions delivered via the cloud.

"Ultimate is the best fit for our organization," said Vicki Murra, HRIS analyst at Midland National Life Insurance Company, an SFG member company. "The company has the same focus on people that we do, it has long tenure in the HR technology industry, and its customer retention rate is very high. UltiPro offers the flexible and easy-to-use technology that we wanted, including 24-7 direct access for employees and managers that immediately gives them the info they need."

With 1,400 member company employees in four offices and many virtual locations around the U.S., SFG wanted to simplify communications and HR processes while providing all employees with more information and news that is instantly available.

"One of the best aspects of UltiPro is how intuitive it is from the end-user perspective as well as from the administrator perspective. We were able to easily configure the UltiPro portal to reflect what we needed — we post everything such as information on benefits providers, our holiday schedule, and the company's mission, vision, and core values for all to see," said Murra. "It's very easy for employees to access. They log in, click a button, and everything is available to them in one centralized place. UltiPro provides our organization with a much more effective way to communicate with and deliver services to our employees. Plus, UltiPro's workflow speeds up processes when approvals are needed."

SFG member company managers also are taking advantage of UltiPro's online accessibility to get the information they need to make every day decisions.

"Our 200+ managers love UltiPro," said Murra. "Before UltiPro, many managers kept a document at their desk that contained employee data, which is not the most secure or real-time way to store information. Now they can get access to a wide variety of employee metrics from wherever they are, this access is available 24-7, and information is secure and accurate."

Murra and her team use UltiPro's reporting capabilities to address a range of HR and payroll requirements, handle requests from managers and executives, and deliver reports to teams across the organization.

"Previously, we had a list of data elements available to us that were controlled by our vendor," said Murra. "With UltiPro, we can extract exactly the data that we want, and we can cut, filter, sort, or display that data however we need to. Several reports are recurring and auto-generated to individuals across the company to meet their unique business requirements. Everyone gets what they need very quickly, and our employees don't have to come to HR to get it."

"One of the primary benefits of UltiPro that we hear from our customers is the high adoption rate by employees and managers. UltiPro is technology that people want to use and that makes their work easier and better," said Greg Swick, chief sales officer at Ultimate Software. "We're very pleased that Sammons Financial Group is leveraging our cloud technology to improve engagement, productivity, and execution— and that UltiPro is helping SFG align its workforce to boost business results."

About Ultimate Software

Ultimate is a leading SaaS provider of people management solutions, with more than 7 million people records in the cloud. Built on the belief that people are the most important ingredient of any business, Ultimate's award-winning UltiPro delivers HR, payroll, and talent management solutions that seamlessly connect people with the information and resources they need to work more effectively. Founded in 1990, the company is headquartered in Weston, Florida, and has more than 1,500 professionals focused on developing the highest quality solutions and services. In 2012, Ultimate was ranked #25 on FORTUNE'S "100 Best Companies to Work For" list. Ultimate has more than 2,300 customers with employees in 115 countries, including Adobe Systems Incorporated, The Container Store, Culligan International, Major League Baseball, The New York Yankees Baseball Team, and Texas Roadhouse. More information on Ultimate's products and services for people management can be found at www.ultimatesoftware.com.

UltiPro is a registered trademark of The Ultimate Software Group, Inc. All other trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners.